We all see how notebooks overtook desktops with their portability and more flexible internet access. Now phones are even more portable and internet access even more flexible than with notebook wifi. Most work I do can now be covered by smartphone. Samsung or ARM processor more likely than Intel.

The big difference between Samsung and Intel is indeed in corporate culture. Some in the forum have already commented on long working hours but I can say the same about many American businesses I have worked for. The difference is that many employees in Asian companies don't worry about next quarterly earnings and impending downsizing thereof. Asian businesses have always taken a long term strategy whereas the American businesses are too quick to pull up stakes and depart if the profits are not there.
It is premature to write Intel off to a second place slot. Intel may be on to something, if we see its recent trend on acquisitions including MacAfee.
Remember also that Samsung makes many products that are sold as products in the consumer market that Intel lacks. With the explosion in growth of consumer devices, it is a natural outcome for Samsung to increase its component volume.

Intel's latest purchase of Infineon's Wireless Solutions Business is a move to secure more ICs in smart mobile platforms and that's a move which potentially enables them to leverage their eternal business units and further expand their wireless expertise and product offerings.

Good article, based on profesional work from IC Insight. Nevertheless, just to show how risky is the analyst charter, compare this:
The projection is based on IC Insights' .... and an assumption that Intel will not significantly expand the scope of its IC businesses through a major acquisition—such as the purchase of a wireless IC operation that serves cellphones...
With the news of the day:
Intel to Acquire Infineon's Wireless Solutions Business
That I mean by showing this, is that analyst will always fail to predict the future. But we still don't know how to do better (just like Churchill comment about Democracy!)

Intel is tying to increase their market opportunities, see two recent, billion dollar aquisitions. But historically they failed in doing so (remember how they tried to enter optical networking and completely exit that shortly after). So if they fail this time Samsung might be able to pass them in IC revenue shortly...Kris

I do not agree with the 15-hr working day making the difference. Japanese workers have been like this for decades and no Japanese company has come close to challenging the likes of Intel. It comes down to having a big hairy audacious goal and being focused to get there. Of course, any help from the govt helps.

SAMSUNG IS A FAST GROWING COMPANY HAVING ALREADY SURPASSED LARGE COMPANIES.
TAKING THEIR TECHNOLOGY,QUALITY,DEVELOPMENTS & WORKMANSHIP INTO CONSIDERATION IT IS OBVIOUS THAT THEY WILL EVEN SURPASS MICROSOFT IN IC's

You got to work closely with Samsung to know how they operate.
Definitely not what kdbouyce mentioned by looking at their 5-year plans.
"Paper strategies" are too high level, merely to justify CEO, CTO and COO are paid to do their jobs. Things are actually happening at middle and low level.
Samsung operates in "impromptu" and automonous departments. Leaders are given authority to spin their products on hand at will. This is unlike Japanese and American style, where everything has to seek upper management for approval, thus lining a long communication channel that takes a long time to see something coming down.
Look at Samsung and compare it with any Japanese and American companies, how fast they spin products? You can imagine the rest of the picture.
Samsung engineers work 15 hours a day. How much do average American engineers work?
Samsung cut suppliers at 70% cost price, but these suppliers wouldn't mind because they wanted their brands known if they got a design win in Samsung.
Japan and US laws won't allow that.
Pricing alone scared comsumers off and favour Samsung.
Samsung has imprinted in many consumers as affordable and reliable.
This is unlike Taiwanese brands - affordable but likely to fail. Acer is a good example for notorious failure rate. Dell is just an American version of Acer in consumer mentality.
American brands - damn expensive to reap you off (to pay American workers high salary), but product features are usually behind Korean and Japanese in terms of product specs.
Check out the notebooks, PDA, etc. American brands usually rolled out products with specs at least 1/2 to 1 generation behind Korean and Japanese products. To be blunt, Americans are slow.
Samsung won the market with speed, unity of the nation, technological edge among its Koreans partners inside and strategic partners outside.

To pixies: Funny why you would think US government could interfere the market-driven global businesses. It is a free market BTW.
Don't think you understand the histories behind these companies.
Just to share a little with you here:
1. Intel with IBM? No way. They were competitors long ago. Eventually IBM backed out from PowerPC by selling its stake to AMCC.
2. Motorola, Apple and IBM again? No way. Apple dropped PowerPC and used Intel. IBM backed out from PowerPC, leaving Motorola to fight the battle alone with Intel. To shed losses, Freescale bears the debt.
3. AMD with Intel? They are head on, since day one. By anti-monopoly law, they can't acquire each other. To maximise popularity, they even resort to working with memory companies and form "compatibility alliances". AMD pumped money into Spansion. Intel pumped money into Numonyx with STMicro.
USA is killing among themselves, least to imagine they can stand together.
4. HP shedded away Agilient to Avago and bought in Compaq, dreaming to be OEM CE brands, but sadly felt the pinches when Fujitsu and NEC widening their combined market share in Asia and Acer "one notebook per child vision" putting HP in a "live today, die tomorrow" bleeding situation.
Have you heard of big things out from HP these few years? HP still thinks it is a prestigous brand by selling average servers and printers at high prices. Consumers are not so stupid to fall for it.
5. Micron is trying to make ends meet. With Seagate trying to exit ASAP from magnetic HDD and tied a knot with Samsung as strategic partner in solid-state memory, so as to balance out with Sandisk and Intel in this market.
6. Motorola least to mention and it is sooner or later dying anytime this decade. Motorola doesn't even have a say in CE market at all. It is happy to depend on its Tetra Radio and "sunset" modem for a living, living today, dying another day.